PARI offers look at Cold War-era espionage

Once a NASA tracking station, the campus near Rosman was used later to eavesdrop on the Soviets during the Cold War. Now the home of PARI, it is used for education purposes.

Photo provided

By Nathaniel H. AxtellTimes-News Correspondent

Published: Sunday, August 26, 2012 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, August 24, 2012 at 7:11 p.m.

Located on a secluded 200-acre tract near Balsam Grove sits the former Rosman Tracking Station. In the 1960s, NASA used the station's giant radio antennas to track early satellites and to assist in America's first manned space flights, including the Apollo mission.

After newer satellite systems forced NASA to mothball the tracking station, the U.S. Department of Defense took over the site in 1981. Declassified documents show the station's real tenant was the National Security Agency, a government intelligence agency then devoted to eavesdropping on the Soviet Union.

According to NBC news reporter Robert Windrem, whose 1986 series "The Eavesdropping War" looked into the facility, the NSA used the renamed Rosman Research Station to intercept communications being relayed by Soviet satellites.

"After the DoD takeover, the work at Rosman, even the number of employees, was a closely guarded secret," wrote an unnamed NSA official in a declassified document from the agency's Center for Cryptologic History. "Budget cuts and the removal of the station's primary function forced the Agency to cease operations on 31 March 1995."

Today the facility is owned by the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute, a nonprofit group dedicated to scientific education and research. PARI runs tours of its campus every Wednesday at 2 p.m., offering the public a rare glimpse into the cloak-and-dagger world of Cold War espionage.

The facility's formerly clandestine operations become clear the moment tourists enter Building One on PARI's campus. Bulletproof glass surrounds the reception area, which has a wall switch that triggers a revolving red light in a nearby corridor.

"If people who entered this building didn't have the proper (security) clearances, he or she would be escorted," said Dr. Joe Phillips, PARI's director of public outreach. "The light would alert all the people working to protect their materials, so as not to reveal anything of a classified nature."

In the building's basement, PARI tour guide Alex Alexander pointed out another sign of the facility's past: a triple lock on a steel door.

"Apparently there were two padlocks, each opened by a separate key so that no one person could gain access," he said. Once the padlocks were removed, another deadbolt had to be turned.

Redundancy was a hallmark of the former NASA and NSA site, Alexander said.

"We have four wells, we have a fire-suppression system — all of this is from the days when the place was filled up with computers," he said. "We have generators that can go about a month before we have to refill the diesel tank. It was designed so they could operate 24/7 without the benefit of public power."

According to PARI's website, Defense Department workers removed 19 of 23 antennas from the research station before they vacated in 1995, along with "most of the instrumentation and electronics." But they left behind a dish antenna nicknamed "Smiley," its concave face adorned with two eyes and an upturned mouth.

"They put a little smiley face on it so when the Russian spy satellites went over, we could say ‘Hi!' " said Alexander, himself a former satellite engineer. "I know that they did that to us because I was taking pictures of them, and they'd mark things out in the snow. Some of the words weren't very nice."

A cluster of trailers on PARI's campus, connected by a covered walkway, used to house intelligence officers who would produce a special report every Monday morning, Phillips said.

"It would be taken up to a car, driven to Asheville and flown to Washington to be on the president's desk that afternoon," he said. "We don't know why those are covered. Probably just to keep people out of the rain. But there are no other covered walkways here, so a lot of the old employees have told us it was covered so the Russian satellites couldn't tell when people were going in and out of the building."

Nowadays, the former spy base is home to a collection of meteorites, NASA memorabilia and classrooms that allow everyone from summer campers to college students the chance to gain hands-on practice in radio astronomy. The sensitive antennas that once listened for Soviet secrets now track stars.

"What I hope you've seen is that this is a national treasure," Alexander said. "It's probably under-utilized, but it's a national treasure just waiting to be tapped."

To reserve a space in PARI's weekly tour, call 828-862-5554. For more information, visit www.pari.edu.

<p>Located on a secluded 200-acre tract near Balsam Grove sits the former Rosman Tracking Station. In the 1960s, NASA used the station's giant radio antennas to track early satellites and to assist in America's first manned space flights, including the Apollo mission.</p><p>After newer satellite systems forced NASA to mothball the tracking station, the U.S. Department of Defense took over the site in 1981. Declassified documents show the station's real tenant was the National Security Agency, a government intelligence agency then devoted to eavesdropping on the Soviet Union.</p><p>According to NBC news reporter Robert Windrem, whose 1986 series "The Eavesdropping War" looked into the facility, the NSA used the renamed Rosman Research Station to intercept communications being relayed by Soviet satellites. </p><p>"After the DoD takeover, the work at Rosman, even the number of employees, was a closely guarded secret," wrote an unnamed NSA official in a declassified document from the agency's Center for Cryptologic History. "Budget cuts and the removal of the station's primary function forced the Agency to cease operations on 31 March 1995."</p><p>Today the facility is owned by the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute, a nonprofit group dedicated to scientific education and research. PARI runs tours of its campus every Wednesday at 2 p.m., offering the public a rare glimpse into the cloak-and-dagger world of Cold War espionage. </p><p>The facility's formerly clandestine operations become clear the moment tourists enter Building One on PARI's campus. Bulletproof glass surrounds the reception area, which has a wall switch that triggers a revolving red light in a nearby corridor.</p><p>"If people who entered this building didn't have the proper (security) clearances, he or she would be escorted," said Dr. Joe Phillips, PARI's director of public outreach. "The light would alert all the people working to protect their materials, so as not to reveal anything of a classified nature."</p><p>In the building's basement, PARI tour guide Alex Alexander pointed out another sign of the facility's past: a triple lock on a steel door. </p><p>"Apparently there were two padlocks, each opened by a separate key so that no one person could gain access," he said. Once the padlocks were removed, another deadbolt had to be turned.</p><p>Redundancy was a hallmark of the former NASA and NSA site, Alexander said.</p><p>"We have four wells, we have a fire-suppression system — all of this is from the days when the place was filled up with computers," he said. "We have generators that can go about a month before we have to refill the diesel tank. It was designed so they could operate 24/7 without the benefit of public power."</p><p>According to PARI's website, Defense Department workers removed 19 of 23 antennas from the research station before they vacated in 1995, along with "most of the instrumentation and electronics." But they left behind a dish antenna nicknamed "Smiley," its concave face adorned with two eyes and an upturned mouth.</p><p>"They put a little smiley face on it so when the Russian spy satellites went over, we could say 'Hi!' " said Alexander, himself a former satellite engineer. "I know that they did that to us because I was taking pictures of them, and they'd mark things out in the snow. Some of the words weren't very nice."</p><p>A cluster of trailers on PARI's campus, connected by a covered walkway, used to house intelligence officers who would produce a special report every Monday morning, Phillips said.</p><p>"It would be taken up to a car, driven to Asheville and flown to Washington to be on the president's desk that afternoon," he said. "We don't know why those are covered. Probably just to keep people out of the rain. But there are no other covered walkways here, so a lot of the old employees have told us it was covered so the Russian satellites couldn't tell when people were going in and out of the building."</p><p>Nowadays, the former spy base is home to a collection of meteorites, NASA memorabilia and classrooms that allow everyone from summer campers to college students the chance to gain hands-on practice in radio astronomy. The sensitive antennas that once listened for Soviet secrets now track stars.</p><p>"What I hope you've seen is that this is a national treasure," Alexander said. "It's probably under-utilized, but it's a national treasure just waiting to be tapped."</p><p>To reserve a space in PARI's weekly tour, call 828-862-5554. For more information, visit www.pari.edu.</p>